The Book of Romans is a powerful epistle from Paul. Although he may not have been the one to actually write down the words, the messages conveyed in the book are both revolutionary and eternal. In the first chapter, Paul bears a powerful testimony and sets up the rest of the book with his authoritative tone. In verse 16 he says, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto the salvation to every one that believeth: to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” I remember on my mission, we were asked to look especially for men in ties to talk to. At first I was a little bothered by the idea because I always considered missionary work to be to everyone… especially the downtrodden and humble. As my mission progressed, I was able to see the wisdom in this counsel, however. Although we definitely kept seeking out everyone we could find that would talk to us, we would definitely focus on talking to men in ties. Often, these men had families they were supporting through stable jobs and had stable lives. Although this may sound a bit judgmental, the work progressed as we talked to these people. We were asked as missionaries to seek out families, and if men in ties were the way to do this, then so be it. In this scripture, Paul talks about first preaching to the Jew, and then the Greek. Although this may seem a bit biased at first reading, it makes sense. The Jews were a God-fearing, scripture-reading, covenant-keeping people who understood Jehovah and knew how to keep commandments. The Greeks had a much different, polytheistic view and were thus less susceptible to adapting to a monotheistic, commandment-keeping belief system. That’s not to say that there weren’t any Greeks in the church (there are several mentioned in the scriptures) but they were less likely to join with the young Christian movement than their Jewish counterparts.
Skipping ahead to chapter 8, I think Paul has conveyed one of the most beautiful concepts in Christianity. He says (verses 37-39): “Nay in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, not things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creatures, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus or Lord.” Paul is a man who has had keen experience with suffering and grief. He knows the loneliness of separation and the pains of torture. Yet all these things have not separated him from the love of God. As he says, he is the “servant” of the Lord, and has had experiences feeling the depth of love that Christ has for his children. This is the message that Paul is conveying, and this is the message of the Gospel. No matter what wrongs we’ve done, we are never too far that the love of Christ cannot reach us.